CRN Channel News

Japanese camera and copy-machine maker Canon Inc. plans to enter the TV business as soon as next year by manufacturing thin displays in a new joint venture with Toshiba Corp., a Japanese electronics company, the latest in a wave of entries into the blossoming market.

Microsoft has moved its Windows Speech Server into the second, and final stage of beta testing, adding additional features to the newest member of its server software family in preparation for a launch next year.

Powerware president Mark A. Ascolese wants to make sure VARs know his company is channel-friendly. On the one-year anniversary of its Power Alliance Program, Ascolese visited the offices of VARBusiness to discuss the provider of power quality and backup power management solutions' plans for the future and its reliance on systems integrators to help it meet its goals.

In the coming year, 64-bit computing will become red-hot in higher-end servers, digital convergence will drive new opportunities for system builders and Linux-based home entertainment PCs will become a small but growing niche for workstation integrators.

America's largest technology companies are working to persuade the Department of Homeland Security against consideration of costly new computer-security rules, arguing that companies already are taking aggressive steps to defend against hackers.

In an effort to help data centers achieve self-healing systems management capabilities, managed service providers BladeLogic and SMARTS (System Management ARTS) have joined forces to expand data center automation. The alliance, announced Monday, is designed to help solution providers leverage both companies' network management appliances to improve service responsiveness and reduce operational costs.

When the FCC's Internet Policy Working Group begins wheeling into action in January, one of its first items of business will be to determine whether VoIP will seep into the nation's telephone universe quietly over a period of several years or sweep in with a vengeance in a few months.

Intel continues to crystallize much of its desktop strategy around a wireless, networked digital home, although a top executive says much integration work needs to be completed by electronics and PC manufacturers.

n the workplace got a boost Tuesday as the Wi-Fi Planet Conference & Expo Fall 2003 opened in San Jose, Calif. The trade show runs through Friday with more than 115 vendors -- including wireless arena top players such as Intel and 3Com -- are strutting new products and announcing future plans to push Wi-Fi.

In an effort to address concerns about the departure of consulting services chief Mike Sinneck, Microsoft this week issued a memo to its channel officially announcing the appointment of two new services executives to a deep bench of six company managers with partner responsibilities in 2004.

Twomey To CFO Role At Appliance Start Up

After a whirlwind 34-year career at IBM that culminated in building a partner network for IBM's Tivoli unit, Michael Twomey is calling it quits. Twomey will leave his post as vice president of business development and channels on Jan. 1. Twomey, a tireless traveler for IBM, will assume the chief financial officer's role at NetBotz, a privately held appliance start-up based in Austin, Texas, that's headed by one of Tivoli's founders, Martin Neath. NetBotz is backed by a slew of financial backers including Hill Partners, CenterPoint Ventures, SSM Ventures, Osprey Ventures, QuestMark Partners and Austin Ventures.